After 2 days of orientation....

I've learned so much in just 2 days, mostly from talking with my host family but also in the culture/language classes. Mostly about communication...they aren't supposed to speak any english at all with me, even if they can (I think the papa does, but he won't admit it). I understand most of the time when they direct a question towards me and talk slower, but when they talk amongst themselves I get pretty lost. It's so strange to feel this sense of removal from my surroundings. I think it's a good experience, though, because it forces me to be more aware of myself, and to pay more attention to body language and facial expressions.

Anyway, today it rained. That's not a sufficient word for it. It RAINED. The streets turned into a river, I was soaked up to my knees, everytime a bus went by it sprayed water in my face. So of course today was the day that we were doing most of our orientation outside. We did an activity where we split into groups of three, and they gave us a location and an address and we had to use the public transportation to find it, and then explore the place we were given to answer some questions. My group went to Pueblito Los Dominicos (http://www.pueblitolosdominicos.com/). It was amazing, and we didn't even get lost finding it. The metro here is awesome, it's cleaner than the T, and really safe and efficient. I have to take it every day to get to classes, which I really enjoy. Of course, like a lot of cities, Santiago is very segregated and I haven't left the wealthy areas yet. We're going to later, to do a comparison of the public and private hospitals. I've heard it's a real eye-opening experience. Speaking of which, there's a ton of protests going on right now about the educational system. According to AP, "The protesters insist that an education bill sent to Congress by President Michelle Bachelet fails to meet their demand for greater national control over education and for free public transportation. Students currently pay one-third of the full fare." Don't worry, parents, I'm staying far away from it...the police here use tear gas, and I think over 200 students have been arrested.

In lighter news, I'm loving learning all the silly Chilenismos that they have here. My favorite is "pololo/polola" (boyfriend/girlfriend). Also, they say "guagua" for baby, which is funny because in other countries, "guagua" means bus. Part of my homework is to go over a few Chilenismos and typical foods and drinks (the alcoholic kind) with my family. It was a ton of fun. Tonight my host mom had her mother, cousin and niece all over. Along with the usual crowd that lives here we had a mini party with delicious cheese and ceviche, and my host mama provided practical examples of some of the drinks...so everyone had a good time with my homework.

OK, I think that's all for right now. Hopefully tomorrow it'll stop raining. I've heard that after it rains, the smog lifts and you can finally see the mountains clearly. I caught a glimpse today and it was breathtaking.

Much love to everyone!

- Lauren